SUMMARY:For two weeks, thousands of Iranians have taken to the streets in what began as protests denouncing a hike in fuel prices. But the uprising quickly turned political, with demands that top officials step down, and the government blacking out internet in response. Meanwhile, Iranian leaders accuse the U.S. of fomenting the unrest. Special correspondent Reza Sayah joins Amna Nawaz to discuss.
SUMMARY:Venezuela is in freefall after years of recession, skyrocketing inflation and a formidable food crisis, sparking outcry and protest. It's pushed angry Venezuelans to take to the streets on a regular basis, demanding that President Nicolas Maduro step down, and inspired a fierce government crackdown. Special correspondent Nadja Drost and videographer Bruno Federico report.
COMMENT:A nation on the road to dictatorship via Hitler's playbook.
Excerpt
SUMMARY: In Istanbul, thousands of supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan went out to the streets, demanding retribution for those responsible for the coup over the weekend. Meanwhile, even more Turkish civil servants were detained or suspended from their jobs. Special correspondent Marcia Biggs talks to Hari Sreenivasan about the crackdown.
HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour): President Obama spoke by phone today with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The U.S. Justice and State Departments are reviewing Turkey's extradition request for Fethullah Gulen, the man the country says is responsible for the attempted coup last week.
And in its aftermath, the crackdown has only intensified, with thousands more civil servants suspended from their jobs today, in addition to the thousands already under detention.
For more, we're joined now from Istanbul by special correspondent Marcia Biggs.
Marcia, you're standing in front what looks like, what — is this a pro-Erdogan rally?
MARCIA BIGGS, special correspondent: Indeed, Hari.
This is the largest protest of the last five days. The first night, as you will remember, on Friday night, when the coup was attempted, President Erdogan called on his people to come down to the streets to save democracy, as he said, to protect him, to protect the government, and this is the fifth day.
People have come down in droves every single day. And this is by far the largest. I would say maybe 3,000 people are here tonight. The mood is one of nationalism, the Turkish flags, a lot of saving the fatherland.
What is very interesting is that Erdogan sent messages, text messages to his people, to the citizens of Turkey today, saying, please come down to the streets, as he has every day, to save the fatherland, to save democracy. And out they have come.
Public transportation has been free every day. Indeed, I took the ferry and I took a tram today, paid no money, and that is to encourage people to come down into the streets.
HARI SREENIVASAN: Tell me about the impact. Is there an impact that you can feel, though, the people that you talk to can feel about all these detentions and firings?
MARCIA BIGGS:The crackdown over the last couple of days has been brutal, as you mentioned, 30,000 suspensions of various ministries, police and education.
That's the people who work in the prime minister's office, judges, prosecutors, 15,000, as you mentioned, members of the Education Ministry; 1,500 deans were asked to resign, and that's in addition to the 1,000 civilians that were arrested and the 6,000 soldiers that were arrested.
That's 50,000 people in this country that have been affected by this crackdown, whether it's being fired, whether it's being asked to resign, whether it's being detained. It's incredible.
SUMMARY: The failed coup attempt in Turkey has won that nation’s president extraordinary power, in a three-month state of emergency, to impose laws by fiat. Critics fear he will chip away at Turkey's secular constitution. Hari Sreenivasan talks with special correspondent Marcia Biggs; and Federica Mogherini, a High Representative/Vice President of the European Union.
I am Retired U.S. Navy (22yrs) and a Vietnam Veteran. After my Navy retirement I was in the computer related industry, now retired. In 2000 I was a registered Republican and voted for George W. Bush. Six months of having Bush in the Whitehouse forced me to re-evaluate my political stance. I had always thought of myself as a Moderate Republican, but was a Republican by "default" NOT because of close examination of the GOP. Due to what has happened in America since 2000, I now consider myself a progressive, and registered as a Non-Affiliated voter.
*Anti-First Amendment policies that attempt to turn America into a theocracy by enshrining ANY religious belief as law.
* Any attempt to suppress human or Constitutional rights.
* Any law or policy that supports discrimination based on religion, ethnicity, race/color, gender, sexual orientation, or any law that does NOT support Equal Treatment under the law.
*Any law or policy that attempts to suppress Freedom of the Press or Free Speech.
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